Wednesday 31 July 2013 02.56 EDT
First published on Wednesday 31 July 2013 02.56 EDT

Tanzanian villagers are suing two African gold mining companies after six people were killed by police and others injured.

On Monday, Leigh Day, the London law firm, served a claim on behalf of 12 villagers against African Barrick Gold (ABG), one of Africa's largest mining companies, and North Mara Gold Mine (NMGM), to highlight the allegedly serious human rights situation at the mine.

The claim alleges that the companies are liable for the deaths and injuries of villagers, including the killing of at least six men by police.

According to Leigh Day, villagers often try to gather rocks in the vicinity of the mine in the hope of finding small amounts of gold. "Police, which are an integral part of the mine's security, allegedly shoot at the villagers using tear gas and live ammunition," said Richard Meeran, a partner at the law firm.

Magige Ghati Kesabo, whose son was allegedly shot and killed by police on 16 May 2011. Photograph: Leigh Day

The claims relate to several incidents, including one in which five men were shot dead in May 2011. The villagers allege the mine and NMGM, which are operated by African Barrick Gold, "failed to curb the use of excessive force at the mine, including deadly force used by police on a regular basis over a protracted period of time".

Meeran said: "Unfortunately, these are not isolated incidents. We are aware of dozens of other instances in which local people have been seriously injured or killed by police at ABG's mine."

ABG, owned by Toronto-based Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold-mining company, said it was saddened by any injury or loss of life at its operations "but we will not compensate illegitimate claims or lawsuits".

It added: "The majority of the claims in this case originate from an incident [which] involved violent intruders who invaded the mine in the course of committing criminal acts. After receiving repeated warnings of the risks associated with such activities, some of these intruders were injured by members of the Tanzanian police acting in self-defence or in defence of the safety of mine employees.

"A small number of additional claims have been brought by intruders who illegally entered the mine on other occasions. In the event any legal proceedings are pursued, ABG will vigorously defend itself against all the claims. While some local people conduct legitimate artisanal mining in areas near North Mara, of greater concern is highly organised trespass on to the mine site, often involving hundreds or even thousands of illegal, armed and violent intruders systematically stealing gold-bearing rocks and other property from the mine."

Lawyers at Leigh Day said many local villagers, who face extreme poverty despite living on gold-rich ground, have in effect been "silenced" by the mine.

The mine, which employs more than 2,000 people, has had a troubled history, with allegations of pollution and calls for it to be closed. In 2008, 200 local people broke into the site and destroyed approximately $15m of Barrick property.

Two years ago, Barrick announced that ABG had launched a full investigation into what it called "credible" allegations of sexual assault at the mine but the results of the investigation were not released.

The supreme court of India ruled in April that the decision on the Niyamgiri mine should be taken by village meetings. Seven of the 12 meetings have been held, and each has registered a unanimous "no" to the project, which makes it look likely that the mine may be cancelled, losing Vedanta a $7bn investment. The final meeting will be on 19 August.